Scalpers take advantage of the hype for the upcoming opening of Shanghai Disneyland Park as they offer tickets for the amusement park at six times the official price.
Chinese ticket traders known as scalpers are joining the excitement for the June opening of the first Disneyland Park in mainland China by selling pre-order tickets higher than the original price of a regular peak day ticket, the South China Morning Post reported.
According to the outlet, scalpers and travel agents sell a single ticket for 3,400 yuan (about $522), which is six times more than the official 499 yuan ($76.68) cost.
On Monday, March 28, pre-order of Shanghai Disneyland tickets opened a minute after midnight but has immediately ceased due to an insurmountable demand after only half an hour.
According to China Daily, Walt Disney Co. decided to sell entry tickets for the $5.5-billion Disney theme park 11 days ahead of its June 16 opening to avoid lengthy lines at ticket booths as well as the emergence of counterfeit tickets.
In an interview with the Global Times, a shop owner who sells Disneyland tickets via Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao revealed that he has already sold 1,000 tickets since he began about a month ago.
"You can prepay for tickets which will be delivered by the end of March," he said.
Another shop owner claimed that Disneyland tickets for June, July and August are already sold out.
Several Taobao shop owners vowed that the tickets they are selling are authentic, claiming that those who bought from them would only be asked to present their names and mobile numbers.
However, SCMP reported that some of the "early birds," those who bought tickets from major travel agents online, received messages that their tickets had been cancelled and would be refunded.
Official statement from Shanghai Disneyland cited by the outlet revealed that people who wish to purchase tickets to the park are always required to present their identity card numbers.
Built at the heart of Shanghai, Disneyland offers an "East-meets-West" theme park that fuses Disney's well-loved entertainment with the local Chinese culture.